Headphones
by JohnC.ofMars
Summary: A Rukato fic for Berrie Salamander's romance/prompt Digimon challenge. I drew the prompt headphones. No real violence, but a fair amount of love and comedy. A good plot for a shameless piece of shipping. Rukato, with some other couples implied.


_Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon, nor profit from this fanfiction in any way. It is purely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy._

**Headphones. **

Decisions, decisions. Why were women so hard to shop for? '_Girl, Takato, she's just a girl. I gotta remember that.'_

It was an important factor to keep in mind. Rika Nonaka was not a woman yet, but a girl. She had just entered her teenage years. Romance wasn't even a blip on her radar yet, or at least he assumed. Asking such questions about Rika would be almost certain death.

He could just see it now: they'd be hanging out at her house. She'd be doing homework; he'd be drawing a picture with colored pencils. "_Hey Rika?"_

"_Yes, Gogglehead." _Even in Takato's head he couldn't get Rika's sneer just right. It wasn't overly cruel, but more exhausted. She seemed exhausted whenever she had to answer one of his questions.

"_Hey Rika?"_

"_Yes Gogglehead."_

"_Do you ever think about guys romantically?" _And then she'd stab him in the jugular with one of his colored pencils.

He shook the thought aside. She wouldn't do that. She'd threaten to; maybe even make like she was going to, but she'd never do it. He could be much more annoying too. Everything he did seemed to annoy her in one way or another. Not like Kazu where she'd start out angry and just build up. Not even Like Ryo where she'd respect the person, but detest the advances. No, with him it was more like she was disappointed. He'd talk, she'd seem to expect more, and in an effort to hide it she'd give him the typical angry glare. She didn't hate him though. She didn't hate any of them, but Rika had poor people skills and he knew it. He was trying to help.

* * *

><p>Takato shook his head. "Too much daydreaming. Mom is right. I do have problems staying focused."<p>

He looked back at the store shelf and frowned. Her last set had been large, but the new stuff was smaller. Would she like something like her old pair or the newer style? And colors too. He had to take that into account.

Red, blue, yellow, orange, violet, '_like her eyes_. _Snap out of it Takato!'_

Takato shook his head again. Women had been on his mind a lot lately. He had just recently decided to take the big step of asking Jeri out. She'd shot him down. He'd been cemented into the friend zone and it sucked. Weeks of mental preparation was all for waste. All the courage he had needed to ask Jeri out had been for nothing. Now he just thought of women, of people he loved and relationships he'd never had. After that he had tried to focus on more important things like his friends. Unfortunately Takato had a hard time focusing on anything.

'_Stay Focused, Takato. I need to find this gift for Rika. It can't be romantic. I'm trying to do something nice, but not go too far, but it has to be now, but it can't seem rushed, but I don't want it to send the wrong message. Why is this so hard?'_

* * *

><p>Takato paused. He had backup! It had taken him considerable courage to ask for help, especially from who he was asking, but since he had and she had said yes he should at least ask her opinion.<p>

Takato looked left and right, confirming he was alone, and then called out like Rika did, "Renamon."

The yellow fox materialized, fading into view from nowhere. "Yes?"

Takato frowned as he looked at the shelf. "What do you think?"

Renamon examined all the little devices, taking each into account. "These look the closest to what she had."

Takato picked up the item she had indicated. It was a set of headphones, the large older type Rika was accustom to. Her old set was starting to die and so he thought he'd be nice and get her a new pair. Rika had been inviting him over to her house every now and then and so he thought he'd be nice and get her a gift. Whenever Rika did anything by herself she'd always put those headphones over her head and listen to music. Takato had seen it a couple times and knew that it was therapeutic for her. Time was a factor though. Rika's family was pretty well off and if he waited too long she'd just go get a new pair herself. He wasn't going to let that happen. He was going to show he cared! Takato Matsuki may not be able to get a girl, good grades, or pay attention for more than five minutes, but damnit he could take care of his friends! His mind was getting sidetracked again, but he tried to focus.

Takato told Renamon, "I don't know that I want to just get her the same thing that she had. I mean that's the safe thing to do, but maybe I can get her an improvement. Like look at this one. It blocks out nighty-eight percent of outside noise while giving superior sound quality so that… she can completely tune me out when I ramble. Maybe she doesn't need an upgrade."

Renamon told Takato, "I don't think it matters."

If anyone else said that to Takato he might have been upset, but Renamon didn't mean it as an insult. Over the years the Tamers had become trained in the art of interpreting her vague responses. She was trying to tell him that Rika would like whatever he got because it came from him. He wanted to get her the best thing though. After all, music was really important to Rika.

At that moment a shopkeeper came around the corner and spotted Renamon. "Hey!"

Renamon vanished as the man approached.

"No digimon allowed! Store policy! You need to buy something and get out, kid."

Takato tried to explain, "Please, she didn't mean any harm. I just asked her to help me pick something out. I'm having trouble deciding and I..."

The shopkeeper took the headphones out of his hands. "Looks like you made a decision. You want to buy or are you going to leave now?"

Takato sighed, "Yeah, fine. I'll buy those."

* * *

><p>Renamon followed along the rooftops above where Takato walked. The boy didn't seem happy with the choice he had made. Rika would appreciate them, they weren't too far off from her old pair of headphones, but they'd also isolate her more. She'd be able to ignore everything around her. Renamon understood his concern, but it somehow made her happy. The entire situation was comical if looked at in the right light. Rika attempted to block out the outside world while Takato daydreamed so much that he wasn't always there. Renamon was always around, always present, and she had observed when Takato and Rika had spent time together. It was amusing how humans could be so close together and yet so far apart. Rika would be sitting no more than three feet from Takato, but be a million miles away. She'd be listening to her music or just lost in thought while Takato… well Takato was always just lost. They'd spend hours together without saying a word to each other more complex than, 'Are you hungry?' Humorous, if not a little sad.<p>

The yellow fox landed on a house and stretched her legs. Takato was heading her way, but moved much slower than her so she had a few moments to spare.

At that moment a black winged demon landed not far from her. "Hey toots. What's new?"

Renamon had gotten used to Beelzemon over time. "Helping Takato. He seems… uncertain."

Beelzemon smirked. "That don't seem so new. What seems ta be the problem?"

Renamon simply replied, "He's trying to do something nice, but I don't think he knows why."

Beelzemon leaned against a wall. "Yeah, I understand that. Funny how we do things without knowin' why, ain't it?"

Renamon was looking over the edge of the building at Takato. "Yes." She looked to Beelzemon. "Any advice for him?"

Advice was a trigger word for Beelzemon. He loved to give out advice. It was always important for him that other people trusted in what he thought and followed in his example. He put a booted leg to the edge of the roof and leaned over before calling down. "Hey Takato, what seems ta be the problem?"

Takato looked up to see the demon Digimon. "Oh hi, Beelzemon." He still seemed upset. "I'm just trying to get something for Rika. The store I went to kind of rushed me out."

Beelzemon looked to Renamon. "How long were you'se two in there for?"

Renamon pointed to the illuminated street lamps. "Those weren't on when he went in."

Beelzemon mumbled to himself, "Long time." He shouted down, "Whatcha get?"

Takato shouted up, "Uh, one thing. Why?"

Beelzemon jumped from the building and landed next to Takato. "You said this was fer Rika?"

Takato nodded.

Beelzemon put a hand to his chin and thought for a moment. A sly smile graced his features before he turned away. "Sorry, can't help ya. I am gonna take yer friend though."

Beelzemon motioned for Renamon to follow. Takato was so confused.

The fox followed, but once they were out of earshot she asked, "What's this about?"

Beelzemon told her, "I wanna see this play out."

Renamon cocked her head in mild amusement, her arms folded across her chest. "What do you have planned?"

Beelzemon just smirked. "I got a little somethin' I think's gonna make things more amusin'. Follow me."

* * *

><p>Three hours of shopping! Three! Rika fumed over all of the stupid outfits her mother had forced her to try on. Jeans she didn't like, shirts she'd never wear, a dress. A dress! It was all ridiculous. All she wanted were some stupid headphones, but her mother had taken the idea of shopping into overdrive. Rika kicked open the front door to her home; her arms weighted down in bags.<p>

Rumiko came next, beaming from the joy of the experience. "Oh Rika, honey, we really should do this more often. It was so much fun! Did you have a good time?"

Rika bit her tongue, took a deep breath to collect herself and turned to her mother with a genuine smile. "Yeah mom. It was nice spending time with you. Maybe next weekend we can just go see a movie or something."

Rika's grandmother had witnessed the whole thing. She moved to Rika and picked up some of the bags. "Here Rika, let me help you with that." Then she whispered to Rika, "I'm proud of you."

Rika had come a long way. She no longer pulled away from her mother and grandmother. She loved them, after all. They still bothered her from time to time, but that feeling faded when she remembered how much she loved them and how much they loved her. The redhead remembered the precious contents in her bags and moved towards her room.

Rumiko mother called after, delaying Rika's retreat, "Oh Rika, before you hide in your room I want you to put all of your things away."

Rika ran to her room, but called back, "Sure, mom."

* * *

><p>As soon as the door closed Rika dug through her bags. "Where are you? I know you're in here. Ah!"<p>

She pulled out a square box of cards. Digimon cards were still a favorite of hers. "Check it out, Renamon. New modify cards."

She was so absorbed in her wicked delight that she didn't notice right away that Renamon didn't appear.

She sorted through the cards and then looked up. "These'll definitely give us an advantage somewhere down the line." Then she realized she was talking to nobody. "Renamon? Re-eenamon. Hmm."

Renamon normally answered her summons.

Rika didn't think much of it. "probably got bored watching me and mom shop and went to spend time with somebody else."

She put her cards aside; her guilty childhood pleasures sated, and began putting clothes away. While putting stuff away her attention was drawn to a set of photos pinned on the side of her mirror. They were of her, Takato and Henry during a vacation a while back. She wasn't even supposed to be there at the time, Takato was just going to visit his cousin Kai, but somehow she had been dragged into everything. She smiled remembering everything. "Some vacation."

They all looked happy. She liked that. She let her finger trace the pictures and land on Takato's head before repeating, "some vacation," less sarcastically.

Had it not been for Takato she'd never have had experiences like that. She was extremely grateful. Aside from Renamon Takato was one of her dearest friends. He was also one of the first. She definitely had a lot to be grateful for. Then she looked at a picture and frowned. The picture in question was of Takato, a smile on his happy go lucky face, with his arm wrapped around Jeri. Jeri was in a yellow sundress trying not to look nervous. That picture had been taken later. The pair looked cute together, but to Rika it was just a reminder of what could have been. Takato had tried to start something with Jeri and Jeri's response was no. Jeri didn't want to ruin the friendship that the two had. Rika couldn't really blame her. Takato was a hell of a friend and losing something like that would have been horrible, but it had wounded Takato. Rika had tried desperately to hate Jeri for the pain she caused to her friend. The redhead just couldn't hold a grudge against Jeri. Jeri was just too nice. Instead Rika had focused on comforting Takato. The two had spent more time together, but not done much. She couldn't ever think of what to say or do, but Takato didn't seem to care. He just seemed to like the company. Then on her birthday Takato had gotten together with Jeri to plan her birthday party. Rika couldn't fathom the pain that must have caused Takato to go to Jeri for help.

* * *

><p>Rika looked away from the photos. They were making her happier than she wanted to be. Instead she focused on putting away clothing.<p>

She worked on this until there was a knock on her door. "Rika, there's a boy here to see you."

Rika cringed. A boy? That normally meant Ryo. Why her mother kept letting him in was beyond her.

She called back, "Tell him to come back later."

Her mother replied, "It's Takato."

Rika smiled, but then frowned. How did her mother know she'd say no to anybody but Takato? She decided she didn't care. Rika got up and headed out of her room to go see Takato.

When she opened the front door Takato smiled warmly. "Hey Rika!"

Rika couldn't help but appreciate how no matter how unsurprised he actually was Takato always made an effort to seem pleasantly surprised when she decided to let him in.

She let him pass by her. "What brings you here this late, Gogglehead?"

Takato pulled out the gift he had just recently bought. "I got you something."

Rika could have just laughed. For a split second she did. The single chuckle that escaped her lips made Takato lower his head. He looked absolutely crestfallen.

Rika covered her mouth. "Takato…thanks. Wanna hang out?"

Takato looked up at her. "But it's late."

Rika walked away. "Your choice."

She knew he would follow. Takato was fairly predictable. Sure it was late, but he'd follow. Rika went into her room while Takato waited outside. He'd never entered Rika's room and probably never would. That was somewhere you just didn't go.

Rika came out with her CD player and held out the headphones. "Wanna try those out?"

It was funny how she still insisted on the old school technology.

Takato smiled. "But I thought you didn't like them?

Rika replied, "What gave you that idea?"

She gave him a look which indicated he should drop the subject. She opened the packaging and plugged in her new headphones. Then she hit play and…nothing. Rika frowned and opened up her CD player. No disc. She got up. "I'll be right back."

* * *

><p>Rika went back into her room. As soon as she was gone Takato saw a clawed hand reach down from the roof of the house. It was Beelzemon's arm. The demon Digimon was holding a CD. He whispered, "Hey Takato, have her play this."<p>

Takato took the disc and looked at it. The disc was a burned one with no identifiable markings. There was no way of telling what was on it. "What is this?"

Beelzemon's head came from over the edge of the roof, hanging upside down. "You wanted my advice. Here it is. Play the disc."

Beelzemon's head disappeared from the lip of the roof as Rika exited her room. Takato took a deep breath, '_here goes nothing'._ "Hey Rika, I actually have a disc."

Rika sat next to him. "Where'd you get that?"

Takato smiled and said honestly, "It just sorta came to me."

Rika popped it in and hit play. She looked to Takato. "Well they work. Thanks Gogglehead. What made you wanna…?" She stopped.

Takato smiled nervously. Rika put her hand to her headphones and listened more closely. Takato had to sit there for minutes on end as Rika listened to the CD. Her facial expressions were killing him. She just looked at him from time to time as if confused, not saying a word.

Takato had no choice but to smile and pretend that it was all part of some plan. All the while he was thinking, '_why would I trust Beelzemon? I must have been nuts. Even Terriermon is less likely to set me up. Rika is going to kill me.'_

Rika hit stop. She looked to Takato. She seemed to be trying to read him; to look through him. Her eyes seemed almost accusatory, somewhat angry, but most importantly confused. She looked totally clueless. Takato was the really clueless one, but all he could do was smile and hope that she had mercy on him.

Then Rika smiled warmly. "Thanks for everything, Takato."

'_Takato? Not Gogglehead? I am gonna die.'_

Rika got off her little porch and handed him the CD player. "Let's listen to this by the pond. I'll be right back."

* * *

><p>Takato sat looking at the CD player and waiting for Rika to return. For a second he contemplated throwing the disc into the pond, but that just seemed wrong. The damage was already done. If only Rika hadn't taken the headphones with her he could at least see what was on the disc. Takato sat and looked at the moon reflecting off the water.<p>

"Takato, are you alright?"

Takato looked up and spotted Renamon crouched on a tree branch in a tree overlooking the pond. Takato was saved. "Renamon! What did Beelzemon put on the CD? I need to know."

Renamon replied, "I don't know. He didn't tell me."

Renamon didn't seem very concerned. She swished her tail once. "Rika is coming." The fox vanished.

Takato would have said more, but Rika sat next to him.

Rika had a shopping bag at her side. "Hey Takato, we're friends, right?"

Takato swallowed hard. "Uh yeah. Of course we are."

Rika smiled. "Good. I got something today. Check it out."

Rika pulled out a plastic wrapped set of ear buds. They were yellow and modern, two things Takato had considered while shopping for Rika. Now he knew why she laughed. She'd picked up headphones for herself the same day he had. '_Great minds think alike.'_

Rika removed them from the packaging. "You aren't mad, right? I just didn't want to turn your gift down."

Takato nodded. "Sure. I'm not mad." He got up from his spot. "But I really should be getting home soon."

Rika frowned. She plugged the new ear buds into her CD player and put one into her ear before offering the other to Takato. "I was hoping you'd sit and listen to the rest of this with me."

Curiosity got the better of Takato, as it usually did, and he sat with Rika. He was incredibly nervous at this point, not just because of the disc now, but because the short cord of the ear buds required him to sit almost cheek to cheek with Rika. He gathered his courage and waited for her to hit play. She did and Takato went nearly white within seconds. Beelzemon had definitely gotten him good. It was a romance CD! '_oh god! This was the one thing I did not want to have happen. Beelzemon screwed me! I am so dead. Rika is so going to get the wrong message. She doesn't even like this type of stuff. How could she __not__ take it the wrong way? She's …she's…Is she humming?'_

Rika was softly humming to the music.

'_Congratulations, Takato Matsuki, you have officially entered the Twilight Zone. A dimension not just of sight and sound, but of mind; something Rika has clearly lost.'_

Halfway through the second song Rika asked, "What made you think of this?"

Takato said honestly, "I don't know. I was just trying to do something nice and one thing led to another." '_Famous last words. You can do better than that!'_

Rika turned her head in his direction, something difficult to do with the short cord. "Hey Takato, we'll always be friends right?"

Takato smiled, _'safe question. You can pull yourself out with this one.'_ He replied happily, "of course."

Rika prodded a little deeper, "No matter what?"

Takato nodded. "No matter what. I promise."

Rika replied, "Good."

She shocked the hell out of him by resting her head on his shoulder. Her spikey top of hair was in his face, but he didn't dare saying anything. Instead Takato's mind was working furiously. '_What the hell is going on? Rika got the wrong message and she's… She's ok with it? Am I ok with it? Come on, Matsuki, there has to be another explanation. Maybe her… head is tired? No that's stupid. There has to be a way to test._' Takato devised a way of testing his theory. His hand was resting on a rock between him and Rika. He slowly, unassumingly, opened his hand and left it palm side up. Now all he could do was wait for her response.

* * *

><p>Rika's head bobbed gently to the music as she hummed the tune. It wasn't what she typically liked, but she went with it because it was important to Takato. She knew he was nervous, so was she, and so she was trying to be as kind as possible. Takato was a shy boy, nervous and unsure of things. She didn't want him to be nervous. He'd been so subtle that she hadn't gotten his message at first, but now she understood. He was trying to start something with her, a serious relationship, but he was nervous. She didn't want him to be and so she looked to him and asked, "Hey Takato, we'll always be friends right?"<p>

This seemed to make him happy. Jeri had said no because she didn't want to lose Takato as a friend. Takato said assuredly, "Of course."

She reassured him, "No matter what?"

He nodded. "No matter what. I promise."

She knew he'd say that. It was the kind of man he was. The only question was whether or not she wanted to be with him. He was her first friend, her best friend, and had saved her life on many occasions. He kept most of her secrets and hated himself for the ones he let slip. She looked at him for a moment and performed the ultimate test. Would he be there tomorrow? Certainly. A year from now? Probably. At the end of her life? He'd most certainly try. He'd do anything for the people he cared about. Most importantly was the fact that not only would he be there in the future, but that she was happy to have him there. There was no person on Earth, except maybe Renamon, who she'd trust more with her back. In looking at Takato, the son of a baker, average student, Tamer, friend, and all around good kid, she couldn't really complain. Having him next to her had always felt right. She couldn't think of a reason not to be with him, but she'd always suspected Jeri of being the one he loved most. Now he was here trying to be with her. She wanted to tell him, '_its ok, Takato. Don't be afraid. I wouldn't say no if you asked.'_

She rested her head against his shoulder and felt him tense ever slightly. Takato's brain was working so furiously to come up with what to do about this that Rika swore she could actually hear the wheels turning in his noggin. Then Takato relaxed. His hand rolled and opened to her. She slowly set her own hand in his. They were young and this was new to them so they both almost pulled away in surprise. Rika wrapped her fingers around his hand so she wouldn't pull away. The two sat frozen, unwilling to move for fear of breaking that seemingly impossible moment.

* * *

><p>Renamon and Beelzemon watched from the roof of a nearby house.<p>

The demon Digimon chuckled, "Well whata ya know?"

Renamon was crouched next to him. "How did you predict this?"

Beelzemon shrugged. "I didn't. I just wanted ta see if Rika'd slug 'im for that disc. Thought it'd be for laughs."

Renamon looked to the demon. "This was all a trick… gone wrong?"

Beelzemon quipped, "Or gone right, dependin' on yer perspective. That's my story an' I'm stickin' to it. I got a reputation to think about, ya know."

Renamon thought about this and asked, "Where'd you get the disc?"

Beelzemon answered in one word, "Jeri."

Renamon stood to her full height and turned to him. "She doesn't know what it's for does she?"

Beelzemon smirked. "I just said it'd make a friend a mine very happy."

Renamon looked out on the duo in Rika's backyard. "They look happy."

Beelzemon laughed out loud, "They look scared outta their teeny tiny minds!"

Renamon didn't reply.

Beelzemon stopped laughing and took a step forward. The next step had him as Impmon. The little imp sat next to Renamon. His ears sagged as he asked carefully, "So did it work? Ya happy?"

Renamon looked out on Takato holding the hand of her Tamer. "I'm not sure."

Impmon replied, "You know what'd definitely make ya happy. A cheeseburger! Maybe a milkshake too. Whatya say, toots? Wanna grab a bite to eat?"

Renamon still didn't look at him as she replied, "Maybe. What does this mean for me?"

She hadn't looked away from Rika and Takato.

Impmon replied smartly, "It means you'll have a lot of time off."

Renamon looked his direction. "Time off?"

Impmon explained, "Well yeah. I mean she'll have Takato and the pineapple head lookin' after 'er all the time. She'll want alone time to think and to chat with 'im and all that mushy stuff."

Renamon tilted her head back to Rika and Takato. For just a second she tried to imagine if she approved of all this. "Will all that make her… happier?"

Impmon nodded. "You never seen humans in love before? It's sickening. They're all clingy, never wantin' to be separated, and they say the stupidest stuff!"

Renamon focused on him and said more forcefully, "Will she be happier?"

Impmon agreed frantically, "Yeah. You bet. Never seen humans happier than when they're all twitterpated. Like they're on drugs or somethin'."

Renamon deliberated for another second and then stood up. "Let's go."

Impmon was amazed. "You mean yer takin' me up on my offer?"

Renamon nodded. "We shouldn't be here. We're intruding. Let's go."

Renamon leapt away from the scene.

Impmon chased after, shouting, "Hey I just got these little stubby legs! Slow down! Hold on! Fox face!"

* * *

><p>Rika and Takato had said nothing of the whole situation.<p>

Rumiko had resisted the urge to break up the scene, her romantic side not wanting her to interrupt, but when ten o'clock rolled around and Takato still wasn't gone she spoke up, "Rika, don't you think it's time Takato went home?"

Rika and Takato broke from their daze. The CD had finished long ago and so they had just been sitting out by the pond without saying a word. Rika released Takato's hand, her fingers not wanting to break from the shape they had been in for so long. They both laughed slightly to relieve the tension.

Rika pulled the ear bud from her ear and shrugged. "I guess she's right. But um, same time tomorrow?"

It was dark, he was drunk on the moment, and nobody would believe him in a million years, but Takato could swear that there was a slight blush to Rika Nonaka's cheeks.

He agreed, "Yeah!" '_A little too enthusiastic there. Tone it down.'_ "Um sure. Should I bring anything?"

Rika cocked her head. "Like what?"

Takato was sometimes incredibly goofy. This was one of those times. "Like bread, or my cards, or Guilmon, or…"

Rika shook her head. "Nope. Just yourself."

Takato agreed and tried to stay silent until he was out of the gate. He didn't want to do anything that would make this incredibly unreal dream end. Rika had his headphones with her when she opened up the door. She offered them to him. "If you want to take them back I understand. You can probably get store credit or something."

Takato shook his head. "You keep um."

They stood there outside Rika's home for a moment, unsure of what happens next.

Takato finally waved. "Um well, see ya."

He darted homewards thinking, _'I survived! More than that. I've never felt more alive! I can't believe it all went so well.'_

A thick bit of plastic wrapped around his neck. Rika had used the headphones he'd given her like a lasso. Takato's mind raced, _'I knew it. The dream has become a nightmare. This is it. She's going to kill me. Good life though. With my last breath I curse Beelzemon.'_

Rika pulled him back with the cord, angrily. "Get back here!"

She pulled him closer and kissed his cheek. "Now you can go."

Takato wobbled back and forth. "I'm, uh, not sure that I want to. Can I get another?"

Rika scowled at him. "No."

Takato frowned. "Oh…"

Rika cut him off, "But you can return the favor."

Takato looked at the redhead. She couldn't look him in the eye at the moment. Her cheeks were the same color as her hair. Takato slowly kissed Rika's cheek and she couldn't help but smile.

"Goodnight Takato. See you tomorrow."

Rika walked back into her house, avoiding eye contact with her mother. Somehow she knew if Rumiko's eyes met hers she'd know what had transpired. Rika slipped into her room and slid the door shut before falling onto her bed. She grinned as she rolled over and thought of what could be. Then she got up and walked to her mirror. She seemed prettier than normal, or maybe it was just the mindset she was in, but she didn't care. Her eyes fell upon a picture of Takato with Jeri. She put her finger over Jeri's face and mentally transposed herself there. Then she removed her finger and shrugged. "Sorry Jeri. Your loss."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's notes<strong>: I've been sitting on this for some time now. With Valentine's Day still lingering I figured now was the time. I know from what it is people will either consider this my best or worst work. I don't particularly like doing one-shots so I always leave them open for a larger story to be spun off of them. This was done as part of a challenge for Berrie Salamander in the forums section. I drew the Rukato couple with Headphones as my prompt. That wasn't fairly specific so I had to just go with what I hoped fit. Truth be told I made an educated guess in hopes of drawing from the Tamers universe. My guess was that she had all the couples lined up in order of seasons so I made the middle range guess and was crafty enough to get Rukato. Headphones was a surprise. I've read a ton of Rukato, but it isn't my absolute favorite Tamers couple so I hope I did it justice. It in no way relates, or is canon, to my series After the Reaper. Hopefully you all enjoyed.


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